If I live in one state and my spouse lives in another, how do I file an uncontested divorce?
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If I live in one state and my spouse lives in another, how do I file an uncontested divorce?
We have been separated for 15 years and have no children or anything else together.
Asked on September 15, 2015 under Family Law, Texas
Answers:
B.H.F., Member, Texas State Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 8 years ago | Contributor
You don't mention which state your spouse lives in, but as long as you live in Texas, you can file in Texas. Texas has become much more proactive in offering pro se forms. These are forms that people can used to file for their own uncontested divorces. The process starts with a petition. This basically says "hey, we don't want to be married any more." The next step is for your spouse to sign a waiver. This document basically says "I want the divorce to and I agree to the proposed decree." After sixty days has passed since the filing of the divorce petition, you can finalize your divorce. To do this, you'll need to schedule a "prove-up" with through the court coordinator. On the date of your hearing, you'll need to take a proposed final decree with you. This is where the court officially grants the divorce.
You can try to prepare the forms yourself. More and more clerks are including proposed forms on their websites. You can also hire an attorney for the limited purpose of drafting the needed documents, but do the leg work yourself. This can reduce the cost of an agreed divorce by about half.
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